


META: “I do repent, and yet I do despair”

by rexluscus



Series: Rex's Star Wars Meta [3]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Meta
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2018-12-08
Packaged: 2019-09-14 10:50:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16911549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rexluscus/pseuds/rexluscus
Summary: Han, Kylo, andDoctor Faustus.





	META: “I do repent, and yet I do despair”

  
  


[Gifs by thebatmn](https://tmblr.co/ZUVICy23qGSaL)

> I’m being torn apart. I want to be free of this pain. I know what I have to do but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it. Will you help me?

The double meaning in these lines is so obvious nobody even comments on it. It’s what gives the scene tension: if Kylo means one thing, the scene will end happily, but if he means the other thing, the scene will end horribly.

There’s actually  _three_  possible meanings, depending on how you think Kylo plans to get free of his pain. “What I have to do” could mean:

1) Rejecting the dark side by surrendering to Han,

2) Rejecting the light side by killing Han, or

3) Refusing either side and killing himself.

I wouldn’t even have thought of option #3 if this scene didn’t remind me so much of Act 5, Scene 1 of  _Doctor Faustus._ It’s as if the filmmakers took that scene from _Faustus_ and put it in a blender. 

In that scene, Faustus, who has sold his soul to the Devil in exchange for magical powers, faces the hour of reckoning when he must pay the Devil what he owes. And of course he’s terrified. On the one hand, he repents, and he’d take it all back if he could. A saintly old man even appears to tell him it’s not too late to ask for God’s mercy. But the Devil’s agent, Mephistophilis, appears and hands Faustus a dagger, which represents despair. The dagger as a conventional sign for despair is both symbolic and literal. Translation: there’s no chance God will forgive you even if you beg, so you may as well kill yourself and embrace damnation.

In TFA, all the same elements are there: the young man torn between good and evil, the old man offering mercy and a reminder that it’s “not too late,” the extended weapon. But in TFA, it’s like Kylo and Han take turns playing Faustus. One moment, it’s Kylo who teeters on the edge of hope and despair. The next moment, he’s holding out the dagger as a Mephistophelean lure and it’s Hanwho has to choose. 

This actually makes sense, cuz Han isn’t the saintly agent of light who comes to remind Faustus (Kylo) of God’s universal promise. Han never had much faith that Kylo could turn back from the dark side, and when he steps out on that bridge, he still clearly thinks the odds are long. (It’s his  _lack_ of faith that makes it such a beautiful character moment for him. Cuz Han started as the reluctant hero who would only back the side with a chance of winning…but he ends attempting something he’s almost certain will kill him, purely motivated by love.)

So it isn’t Kylo but Han who makes the suicidal grab for the dagger. And Han grabbing the lightsaber is an act that expresses hope, not despair. Or maybe it just expresses unconditional love for his kid, whether Kylo is dark or light. See what I mean about the blender? I don’t know where this  _Faustus_ stuff gets me, but there you go. I mean, was there ever a chance Kylo might throw himselfoff that bridge, or was option #3 only ever a faint, spectral idea that nobody but readers of Marlowe would consider? Maybe people smarter than me will be able to make something of all this.

**Author's Note:**

> This meta was originally posted on Tumblr, but I'm posting it here to make sure it's preserved.


End file.
